You might not be aware that 10,000 Victories has our own “Top Gun”. Kirby Walsh began studying with Sifu Jensen at 10,000 Victories when he was still in high school dreaming of becoming an Airforce Pilot. Walsh was always a highly motivated and hardworking student. Walsh was inspired to learn Northern Shaolin Kung Fu to protect himself if he was ever shot down on a mission and for the mental and physical strength it would give him. It is with incredible pride that we can share some of Kirby Walsh’s recent photos. In these photos he has just completed his first aircraft carrier landings, earning his wings and becoming a full-fledged Navy F18 pilot. If you watched or can watch Tom Cruise’s new “Top Gun” it features F18 aircraft and pilots throughout the movie.
Walsh described what it is like to land an F18 on a carrier. How far away and tiny, a mere barely visible speck to aim at when he lines up and begins his decent to land. The incredible concentration to maintain course even with modern computer assisted correction of his flight path. Finally, catching the hook on the bottom of his plane on the cable attached to the carrier to stop his plane with only 18” of space to spare. Walsh described the incredible rush catching the wire, the plane suddenly stopped, feeling alive and joyous with the success of completing a harrowing, impossible task.
The privilege of touching those F18 controls and piloting an F18 is only given to a few incredible individuals. No matter how rich or famous Elon Musk or Tom Cruise are they will never have the amazing and terrifying experience of piloting an F18 from a USA Navy carrier. To get to this point was a long and tough journey for Kirby Walsh.
To perform at this level and work as a team with the intensity and precision required calls for people with high levels of character and integrity. Character and integrity are developed by making mistakes, learning, and growing from them and committing to the process of building character and integrity. We watched Kirby Walsh have moments where it seemed he was a million miles from his dream and completely stuck. Kirby found inspiration, returned to his dream and pursued steady, hard work learning his craft and developing the mental strength, character, and ability to work as a team for many years to advance in the Navy.
Many people have had a hard time starting or advancing their careers in the last few years. Pursuing studies, especially martial arts like Tai Chi Chuan or Northern Shaolin has been exceptionally more difficult than normal. Follow the example shown by Kirby Walsh and don’t give up, keep trying, and stick to your dream whether it is learning Tai Chi or Northern Shaolin Kung Fu and/or building a new career. If you have stopped, start anew and begin with a fresh spirit. Keep trying and don’t give up even if it seems there is little progress, you are frustrated, or obstacles arise. Sometimes we move faster and sometimes we move slower. So long as we keep going we can succeed.
Give up, quit, or stop and you will certainly fail. Keep trying and the possibility of success is ever present. We believe in you and wish you great success!
Congratulations to Kirby Walsh for becoming a United States Navy Top Gun! You are an amazing inspiration to all of us. Those of us who remember your energetic work outs and sparring sessions are twice as proud!
